Microsoft takes down mod that re-created Halo 3 in Counter-Strike 2

Last month saw the release of Project Misriah, an ambitious modding project that tried to re-create the feel of Halo 3 inside Valve’s Counter-Strike 2. That project has now been taken down from the Steam Workshop, though, after drawing a Digital Millennium Copyright Act complaint from Microsoft.

Modder Froddoyo introduced Project Misriah on November 16 as “a workshop collection of Halo ported maps and assets that aims to bring a Halo 3 multiplayer-like experience to Counter-Strike 2.” Far from just being inspired by Halo 3, the mod directly copied multiple sound effects, character models, maps, and even movement mechanics from Bungie and Microsoft’s popular series.

In the weeks since, Project Misriah has drawn a lot of praise from both Halo fans and those impressed by what modders could pull off with the Source 2 engine. But last Wednesday, modder Froddoyo shared a DMCA request from Microsoft citing the “unauthorized use of Halo game content in a [Steam] workshop not associated with Halo games.”

A trailer announcing Project Misriah, posted last month.

In a social media post sharing that DMCA text, Froddoyo ruefully said that players should “make sure to give your thanks to Microsoft” for the project’s fate. But in a comment on Project Misriah’s YouTube trailer, Froddoyo noted that, following the takedown, the project “will not be worked on or uploaded in the future. But hey, it was fun while it lasted. Thank you to all of the players and supporters of [the] project. We will use the knowledge and skills obtained from this to cook up something else!”

Whose Halo is it, anyway?

Valve is no stranger to honoring copyright policing requests across the vast stretches of fan-made Steam Workshop content. Last year, the makers of Garry’s Mod said it was removing “all Nintendo related stuff” after the famously litigious company started filing takedown requests. “Honestly, this is fair enough,” creator Garry Newman said at the time. “This is Nintendo’s content and what they allow and don’t allow is up to them.”

In the past, Microsoft has given its tacit approval to transformative, non-commercial Halo fan games such as Installation 01, which abides by Microsoft’s Game Content Usage Rules. But Microsoft has appeared less forgiving of fan projects that seek to simply copy or emulate its games directly, taking repeated action against a mod that opened up international access for the Russia-exclusive Halo Online.

Of course, Microsoft has more than a theoretical interest in protecting classic Halo these days, since it still sells The Master Chief Collection and the Halo Anniversary series of remakes. And then there’s Halo: Campaign Evolved, announced earlier this year as an upcoming re-creation of the single-player portion of the original game. So if you want a modern take on that classic Halo experience, you’d better be ready to pay Microsoft for the privilege.

Whose Halo is it, anyway?